On the train, Qin Yu finished arranging his belongings and lay down on the lower berth. His cousin, Zhang Hua, had booked a soft sleeper for him, saving him from the fatigue of traveling for over ten hours.
"Brother, can we switch? Can you take the upper berth? Look, even with my 200-plus pounds, I can't climb up there." Just as Qin Yu had settled down, a fat man carrying a bag walked in, wiping the sweat off his forehead. He approached Qin Yu while negotiating.
"Sure." Qin Yu glanced at the man, whose entire body was covered in fat, and his neck was almost invisible. He gave off a humorous vibe.
"Thanks, little brother. Do you smoke?" The fat man grinned with joy as Qin Yu agreed. He took out a pack of cigarettes from his bag, opened it, and offered one to him.
"No, thanks. You can have it." Qin Yu politely declined. The fat man seemed harmless and had an amiable appearance, but it was always better to be cautious when away from home. Qin Yu had heard stories of people accepting cigarettes from strangers on trains, only to find themselves robbed of all their belongings.
"Excuse me, let me pass." Shortly after Qin Yu climbed up to the upper berth, another voice came from the doorway. Several large sacks blocked the view of a person behind them. However, judging by the non-standard Mandarin, Qin Yu understood that it must be a migrant worker coming in.
Once the sacks were placed, Qin Yu finally caught a glimpse of the person's appearance. The man had unkempt hair, a thin and sallow face, protruding cheekbones, and wore a dirty and disheveled light blue shirt with several large characters on it: "Haitian Soybean Sauce."
When the man noticed Qin Yu looking at him, a shy smile appeared on his face, seemingly a little embarrassed. Qin Yu returned the smile as a polite greeting.
"Hmph, what's in this bag? It has a sour smell." The fat man's voice came from below.
"Sir, I brought some homemade pickled cabbage to eat. Sorry about that." The man's face showed a apologetic expression. Qin Yu knew about this pickled cabbage. Many people in rural areas would sun-dry the leftover cabbage in the sun. Once the moisture evaporated, they would soak it in water until it became slightly sour. After squeezing out the excess water, they would use it as a side dish for drinking or for stir-frying with meat. It was a common dish in rural households.
"This lousy pickled cabbage isn't worth much. It's such a hassle to bring it along." The fat man wrinkled his nose in disgust, lit a cigarette to mask the sour smell emanating from the pickled cabbage.
The man didn't respond, his expression somewhat awkward. This bag of pickled cabbage wasn't worth much money, but bringing it to another place could save him money on breakfast by eating it with porridge or as a side dish with rice.
"Don't mention it. When we're away from home, having a plate of pickled cabbage gives a taste of our hometown. I often think about the pickled cabbage we have at home when I'm away." Seeing the man feeling awkward, Qin Yu quickly spoke up to ease the situation. It wasn't easy to be away from home, and for some people, a meal would only cost a dozen yuan or so. But for these migrant workers, saving a dozen yuan could be a significant income.
"Yeah, I know. It's not easy for everyone when they're away from home. Are you all heading to Guangzhou too?" The fat man just grumbled a bit. As he spoke, he tossed a cigarette to the man.
"Oh, thank you, boss. This is a good cigarette." The man took the cigarette, examined it, and said with a smile, "I'm going to Huizhou, not far from Guangzhou."
"What good or bad cigarette? You're just pretending to be rich. Putting up a front. How could you afford to buy a sleeper ticket?"
"Phew!" Qin Yu on the upper berth couldn't help but burst into laughter upon hearing the fat man's words. It really didn't suit him to use that phrase to describe the fat man. He didn't need to pretend to be rich; he was already fat enough.
"How could I afford to buy a sleeper ticket? My daughter helped me book it online. She works in Guangzhou after graduating from university. When she heard I was traveling, she insisted on getting me a sleeper ticket."
A proud expression appeared on the man's face. When he talked about his daughter, he had a smile on his face. It was evident that having a daughter who had completed university education was something he was proud of.
"Why don't you go stay with your daughter? It would be nice to have someone taking care of you there."
"It's not good. It wouldn't be right for my child." The man smiled. Living with his daughter, a city dweller, wouldn't be appropriate. He knew very well how influential people in the city could be. He couldn't allow his daughter to face any negative impact just because her father was a migrant worker.
Pity the hearts of all parents, this is a common problem for parents. Qin Yu helplessly shook his head. How many children truly understand the hardships of their parents? Isn't he the same? When he was in school, he rarely made phone calls home. Even if he did, it would only be a few hurried sentences before hanging up.
The train continued to move forward, and the few people lay in their beds lost in their own thoughts. After a while, several stations passed by. Just as Qin Yu was about to doze off in a daze, the door to the sleeper compartment was pushed open once again.
A young woman appeared at the door, her wavy hair cascading down. She wore a black single-shoulder jacket, revealing a glimpse of her delicate shoulder. From bottom to top, one could see her black high-heeled shoes with a height of 17 centimeters, the laces winding up to her knees. She wore a short mini-skirt, showcasing her long, slender, and perfectly rounded snow-white legs. The tight skirt hugged her curvaceous buttocks, and one could even clearly see the seductive contours.
The woman had a bewitching appearance, with slender and slightly raised eyebrows. Her gaze swept over the three people in the compartment, as if she was flirting. Qin Yu could clearly hear the sound of the man in the lower bunk swallowing his saliva.
"I'm in upper berth 12A8. Could you please make room, big brother?"
Her voice was gentle, with a touch of the unique charm of southern women. She checked her ticket and confirmed her seat, then spoke to the man below.
"Sure, sure." The man hastily moved aside, not daring to look at the woman. He had probably never encountered such a beautiful and seductive woman before, let alone had any interaction with someone like her. His face turned red in an instant.
It wasn't just the man who couldn't control himself. Even Qin Yu's breathing became heavy. This woman's appearance was already highly tempting, and coupled with her attire, she was simply irresistible.
The woman bent down and took off her high-heeled shoes, exposing her perky buttocks in front of the three men. Her round buttocks were tightly wrapped by the ultra-short skirt, highlighting their contours, and even revealing a deep groove.
The woman paid no attention to the three men in the compartment. She casually took off her high-heeled shoes, revealing a pair of delicate and dainty feet with bright red nail polish on all ten toes.
"Step, step, step!"
The woman quickly climbed onto the upper berth and lay down on the bed. However, from Qin Yu's angle, he could still see her lying flat, her towering chest rising and falling with each breath.
"What a seductress." There are some women who are naturally enchanting, capable of arousing the most primal desires in men with every move they make. The woman in the upper berth across from him was clearly one of those seductive women.
Qin Yu got up from his bed and climbed down, opening the compartment door. He walked directly towards the smoking area, took out a cigarette, and lit it, taking a deep drag to alleviate the stirred up by that woman.
"Exhale."
As he exhaled the smoke, he finally calmed down. Looking at his little brother down there, which had shown signs of awakening earlier, Qin Yu sighed bitterly. It seemed that his temper had been a bit out of control lately, probably because he had been separated from Meng Yao for too long, causing his self-control to wane.
After finishing the cigarette, he splashed his face with cold water and then walked back to the sleeper compartment. Pushing open the door, he noticed the chubby guy giving him suggestive gestures, his face filled with envy and jealousy.
"Little brother, it's worth it to switch places with me. Up there, you can have a good view of the beauty." Just as Qin Yu was about to step onto the ladder, the chubby guy leaned over and whispered to him.
"It's worth it indeed. It made me wash my face to cool down." Qin Yu curled his lips, silently criticizing in his heart, and ignored the chubby guy, climbing up directly.
The woman across from him was now holding her phone in front of her, but the screen was black. Qin Yu quickly understood that she was using the phone screen as a mirror.
"She's really a girl who loves her appearance." Shaking his head, Qin Yu turned away from the woman and buried himself in sleep.